The city of Leander kicked off its comprehensive plan process Jan. 16 by holding a joint workshop between the City Council, the Planning and Zoning Commission, and the 16-member comprehensive plan advisory committee.
In 2020 the city of Leander will write a new comprehensive plan, as mandated by state law. A comprehensive plan makes recommendations for where future development and infrastructure should go within the city limits and how to best fund future capital projects, according to the city.
The joint meeting was led by representatives from Halff Associates, an Austin-based consulting firm hired by City Council for $198,860 to craft the 2020 plan.
Two Halff employees—Matt Bucchin, director of planning, and Jordan Maddox, planning team leader—conducted a 45-minute slide presentation at the joint meeting, laying out the first steps of the comprehensive plan to the three entities.
After conducting several real-time polls with the three entities about their experience and priorities for the plan, Maddox explained the next four steps:
- Conduct an online poll for six weeks, starting around Feb. 1, that will attempt to gauge community priorities and concerns
- host the first open house at 5:30 p.m. Feb. 19 at SouthStar Bank, at 10737 E. Crystal Falls Parkway, Ste. 100, in Leander, where computers will be available for community members to complete the poll
- hold a “mid-point “workshop between City Council, Planning and Zoning and CPAC, and
- have a meeting between CPAC and the consulting firm to lay out goals and plan direction.
Halff representatives stressed that the comprehensive plan is in its earliest stages.
“We are in learning mode, we are in absorption mode,” Maddox said.
The city of Leander has created an online page for the 2020 comprehensive plan at www.leandertx.gov/2020.
After the joint workshop, City Council held its regular meeting.
